Rio de Janeiro – Brazilian raw steel production reached 2.8 million tons in March, down 7.4% from March 2014, according to data from industry organization Instituto Aço Brasil (IABr). Flat-rolled steel production reached 2.3 million tons, up 0.1% from March 2014. In quarter one, 8.4 million tons of raw steel and 6.6 million tons of flat-rolled steel were produced, respectively up 0.7% and 4.4% from Q1 2014.
The executive chairman of IABr, Marco Polo de Mello Lopes, said that despite the minor improvement in the quarter, there are no signs of short-term advances in the industry. “Considering the economy, our domestic scenario is not conducive to an outlook of growth. We are speaking of a negative growth forecast for the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). And when it comes to the international scenario, there is a surplus capacity of 700 million tons worldwide, which leads to predatory practices and a huge upsurge in importation into Brazil,” he said.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
